1. Technical Field
This disclosure relates generally to charging rechargeable cells, and more particularly to rapidly charging rechargeable cells.
2. Background Art
Portable electronic devices, such as cellular telephones, laptop computers, tablet computers, pagers, and two-way radios, derive their portability from batteries having rechargeable cells. Rechargeable batteries allow these devices to travel with users wherever they may go. A typical rechargeable battery disposed within one of these devices may be charged and discharged hundreds of times over its lifetime. This is particularly true due to the daily reliance people increasingly place upon their personal electronic devices.
When the energy stored within the rechargeable cells of a rechargeable battery becomes depleted, it is necessary to attach a power supply to either the device to which the rechargeable battery is attached or to the rechargeable battery itself to charge the cells. Charging takes time. While the cells are tethered to a charger, it is not available for travel with the user. The longer the charging process takes, the longer a user must wait before again being able to take their mobile device with them on the go. It would be advantageous to have a method or system to more rapidly charge depleted rechargeable cells.
Skilled artisans will appreciate that elements in the figures are illustrated for simplicity and clarity and have not necessarily been drawn to scale. For example, the dimensions of some of the elements in the figures may be exaggerated relative to other elements to help to improve understanding of embodiments of the present disclosure.